


Excuses Excuses

by ajpotter



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Gen, Identity Reveal, Intern Marinette
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-20
Updated: 2017-02-20
Packaged: 2018-09-25 19:36:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9840902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ajpotter/pseuds/ajpotter
Summary: A summer internship with Gabriel Agreste meant Marinette was more stressed than ever. Then once Chat Noir came to Ladybug with his problems and it became a habit for them.





	

**Author's Note:**

> So I was interested to see what a reveal fic would look like without the love square playing majorly into it, but never had the right inspiration for how to go about that. Then I remembered that I had to take my earrings and jewelry off before going into work the next day and lightning struck. So I stayed up until 5am writing this. I'm worried I didn't get the characters voices down as good as I normally do because I've only watched a few of the episodes in English and it's slightly rushed and I probably could have drawn it out a bit more but it was a nice writing exercise and I'm pretty proud of it. Anyways, let me know what you think and I hope you enjoy.

Marinette’s internship gave her more anxiety than she could ever imagine. There was no denying she loved her job and she was good at it too. She had applied the last two years and now finally at seventeen she was spending the summer working for her fashion idol Gabriel Agreste. Well, working for him was a stretch; she was an assistant to one of his assistants, a woman named Claudine. As of this point she had spoken to him maybe three times including her interview. Still it was refreshing to be around people who were as passionate about fashion as she was.  
  
There was another perk as well; Adrien spent most of his free time in the summer around the office. Over the past few years she had been working on getting her crush to at least a point where the two of them could be friends. For the most part she had succeeded, but when her job was to take notes as he modeled shirtless there were some things she probably wouldn’t be able to get past.  
  
They could talk now though. Which was a good thing considering Adrien was the only other person her age she saw during the day. Often times if his father hadn’t planned something else, he would meet up with Marinette for lunch. She always packed an extra pastry from the bakery for him. He was grateful that he got to eat something not on his approved diet and Marinette was happy to have someone to eat lunch with.  
  
Her Ladybug duties had only caused problems a couple of times but for the most part everyone was so frazzled after an akuma attack, she could usually manage some excuse to satisfy who ever was questioning her. The suggestion of adding an akuma alert to the services the Ladyblog offered was partially self-serving, but Alya leapt on it the moment it was suggested. If a certain number of people reported into the Ladyblog with the appearance of an Akuma, an alert went out to anyone who had subscribed. It also helped with keeping people off the busy streets when her and Chat Noir were working.

Speaking of Chat Noir, he was late for their patrol. Ladybug frowned as she checked the time once again. They would need to start soon if she wanted to get to bed. Her job had her up early and she couldn’t afford to be late. The decision to leave on her own was almost made when she heard Chat drop down next to her.

“My Lady, I am very sorry for being late. I got held up at work.” He did seem genuinely sorry, but she still gave him a teasing frown.

“Come along kitty, no time to waste. Especially now.” She gives him a huge grin before jumping off the side of the building.

“Right behind you bugaboo!” He jumps off behind her trailing a little behind and looking out along the Paris streets as they pass.

Akumas had been fewer between recently, so they decided to meet up a few days a week to use their powers to help with some more ordinary crime. They set firm lines about when they would intervene and when they wouldn’t. Of course this was only after they ended up with a gun trained at them. Neither of them were willing to risk finding out if their suits were bulletproof. Stopping pickpockets and people with small knives however were okay. The police had gotten used to their calls one way or another. The extra practice was good too. Akuma attacks were so hectic; they were over almost as soon as they had started.

Tonight was a slow night for pickpockets however and they eventually found themselves perched on some of the middle rungs of the Eiffel Tower looking out over Paris. They decided to give it a little longer before turning in for the night.

“So My Lady how has your summer been going so far? Keeping busy?” Chat always instigated the conversations and most of the time Ladybug was happy to entertain the idea.

“Very busy between work and Ladybug duties. How about you?” She had to keep it simple, no new information for him to latch onto.

“Definitely busy. I can’t wait for school to start back up again.” It was always a surprise to Ladybug when she remembered Chat liked school.

“Ugh school. Only one year left before I can focus on what I really want to do.”

Chat sat up a little straighter, “And what would that be?”

“You know the rules Chat.” Nearly three years and she still couldn’t bring herself to let him know.

“C’mon, you made up those rules. I asked Plagg and he said Ladybugs and Chat Noirs have known each other in the past. Did your kwami give you the rules?” He seemed truly upset which was not her intention.

She sighed. “No, Tikki said it’s up to me. As long as I keep my identity and myself safe she’s happy. I just can’t bring myself to let that door open. What brings this up now?”

“See now I want to meet Tikki one day and I also want to respect all of that but there’s stuff I wish I could talk about but I wouldn’t be able to with anyone else.”

There was a moment of quiet between the two of them as Ladybug considered this. “Okay. Lightening up the rules on a trial basis. Still speaking as generally as possible. Understand?” Chat’s face brightened and he nodded accepting the conditions. “Go ahead.”

“It’s the reason I was late tonight. My … boss told me I needed to take off my ring for…” Chat paused trying to find a good substitution. “For a special event. I argued with him over it. Even if it were just for a short time, I don’t feel safe taking it off. Have you had to deal with that?”

“So far, not anything like that. There are some girls at work who tease me for wearing the same earrings every day but usually there’s no reason I’d have to take them off. Did he give in?”

“Eventually, but now I’m in trouble over it.”

“Well what excuse did you give?”

“That I couldn’t get it off.” Ladybug busted out laughing and soon after Chat joined in. After they’d both calmed down he tried to defend himself “It was all I could come up with on the spot.”

“Next time try something more sentimental. Like it’s important to your family. Your boss might understand that.”

“My boss is my dad.” Chat replied bitterly.

Ladybug takes a sharp breath in. That was more than she was expecting to learn. “Well appeal to what he would find acceptable. Take some time to think up a few excuses.”

“Thanks bugaboo. I know this was hard for you.”

“Not as hard as I thought it would be. I think for the time being, we can lighten the rules a little. I say we call it a night though, I need some sleep.”

“Goodnight My Lady. Same time and place tomorrow?”

“Sure thing kitty.” Ladybug smiled and left him grinning on the Eiffel Tower, where he stayed for a while as he wondered if he dreamt their conversation. 

* * *

Marinette spent the following weeks proving herself as reliable not only at her internship, but also to her partner. Most nights after patrol they found themselves sitting on the rungs of the Eiffel Towel talking. Sometimes it was about a TV show they both watched; sometimes it was advice on work. Chat would complain about how Plagg’s cheese kept stinking up his bags and she would suggest the best way to wash them. She got in trouble at work over disappearing during an akuma attack and they spent the rest of the night brainstorming excuses they could use. Her sadness over disappointing her boss disappeared as Chat came up with more and more absurd excuses. Before this summer she would have pushed him away but now she looked forward to their conversations.

One night they sat on the edge of a roof as close to the concert in the park as they could get when Ladybug blurted out, “Thank you.”

“For what?” Chat was confused and startled. He tried to think of what he had done that night to earn her gratitude.

“For getting me to change my rules. I’m still not ready for us to know each other’s identities, but I don’t think I ever would have gotten closer if you hadn’t given me the push.”

“I’ll accept your thanks but you’re the one who offered to open up. I should be thanking you.” Maybe it was just the lights but it looked like Chat Noir was blushing.

“Well we’re both grateful for each other then.” Ladybug leaned against Chat, trying to show her partner just that.

“Agreed.”

The two of them stayed like that for a while until a shout in a nearby alley broke them out of their trance.

* * *

Marinette was more than halfway through her internship the first time she got to go to a shoot on location. It was for Gabriel Agreste’s winter line and they had found a small location just outside of Paris that would allow them access to their snow machines. The designs were geared toward a younger more athletic crowd. They were far away from the office where there was access to everything, so her bag was filled with everything she could think of needing. She was ready for this.

It was fifteen minutes before something went wrong. One of the models didn’t show up, her plane had been cancelled and she was stuck hours away. They were arguing about how to find another model that would match the look of the others when Gabriel showed up with Adrien.

“What seems to be the problem?”

“One of the models is stuck at the airport, she won’t be able to make it and we’re losing time. There’s no one else who fits the parameters you set for the models.” Claudine explained in as calm a tone as she could manage.

Gabriel’s eyes sweep across the gathered group of his employees before they fall on Marinette. “Why not use Ms. Dupain-Cheng. I believe she fits all the parameters and from what I’ve gleamed over the past weeks she’s more adept at alterations than half of you. Get her fitted as soon as possible.” He turns to leave, but looks back briefly. “And Ms. Dupain-Cheng try not to look so much like a car has almost hit you.”

Everyone rushes into action around her. Someone grabs her bag off of her and sets it off to the side. She’s briefly concerned about Tikki but it looks like it’s safe where it is for now.

“You’ll need to take those earrings out. We have some that will go with the outfits you’ll be wearing better.”

At that Marinette freezes suddenly aware of what’s happening around her. “Oh I can’t.”

“And why not?” Claudine asked with an astoundingly annoyed look.

For all that Marinette had lectured Chat about having good excuses ready, she had none of her own. “I-they’re important to my family, sentimental.”

“And she only got her ears pierced recently. She’s not supposed to take them out this soon, right Marinette?” Adrien’s voice rang in Marinette’s ears as she nodded and hoped they would accept that. It was not true in the least and Adrien should have known that.

“Fine, tell the stylists to put her hair down so it covers them.”

She let out a sigh of relief and followed everyone’s instructions as they rushed her from place to place. The reality of what was happening still hadn’t set in. And how Adrien had come to her rescue was still confusing her.

They had finally left her alone to work on some of the alterations in a back room after seeing how quick she was with a needle. Someone peered through the doorway before they approached. It was Adrien. “Hey, I brought you your bag. You seemed worried when they took it away. I was careful with it.”

“Thank you so much Adrien!” Marinette sets the pants next to her before taking the bag from him. She felt a lot better knowing Tikki was close by.

“You’re welcome. Are you okay with all of this? I know my dad didn’t really ask.” Adrien seemed worried.

“I wasn’t expecting it but there’s no real reason to say no, right?”

Adrien let out sigh of relief and fell silent before he asked, “What would you do if you made a promise, but you broke it accidentally?”

“I’d probably try and own up to it and fix it if I could. Why?”

Adrien took a moment to consider this before he responded. “Because My Lady I’m feeling really bad about finding out, especially when you’re not ready.”

Marinette jumped up from her seat and looked at Adrien closer than she had in a while. Her gaze finally ended up at his right hand where a familiar silver ring sat.

Before he could say anything else, her hand flew up to her mouth to block the laugh that threatened to come out.

“Oh, come on, it’s not that funny.”

Marinette grinned and laughed harder. “Oh it really is kitty. We’ve known each other since before either of us got our powers. Not long granted. But when did you find out?”

“’They’re important to my family, sentimental.’ It sounded a little familiar. Also I know you’ve had your ears pierced for as long as I’ve known you. You looked more worried about someone taking your bag away than when someone tore your jacket off. It was just a few small connections after that.”

Marinette walked over and closed the door so no one would walk right in then opened her bag. “Well I guess I should introduce you to Tikki.”

Tikki flew out of a small pocket in Marinette’s bag, “Nice to meet you.”

Adrien grinned, “Nice to meet you too. Plagg-“ Plagg flew out and hugged Tikki in mid-air which sent both of them tumbling.

“It seems they know each other already.”

“We’ve known each other for forever.” Plagg settled down on top of Adrien’s hair. “It is however nice to finally meet you. You wouldn’t happen to have any cheese on you right now? Adrien forgot to bring me some.”

“I did and you finished it before we even got here. You couldn’t last a full minute without asking?” Adrien was clearly exasperated with Plagg, which Marinette wondered was an all the time thing.

“It’s nice to meet you too Plagg. There might be some on the sandwich in my bag, you’re more then welcome to it.”

“She’s much nicer than you.”

Before Adrien could argue back, there was a knock on the door and both kwamis hid quickly. Claudine rushed into the room clearly worried. “If you’re almost done with those pants we need you to head to make-up. You too Adrien.”

They both nod and Marinette grabbed the pants to finish them up. “I’ll be done in one minute. We’ll talk about that later?”

“Sure. Do you mind if I stick my phone in your bag for now?”

Marinette pauses for a minute and then sees the collar of Adrien’s shirt rustling. “Of course not. Go right ahead.”

He places himself in between Claudine and the bag and Marinette sees a flash of black shoot towards her bag. Before he left he turned and said, “I’ll see you in a little bit.”

Marinette nodded and turned back to the pants. Before Claudine could say anything she grinned and held the pants out for her boss to take. “Finished.”

“Great. Now follow me to make-up.”

“Right behind you!” As soon as Claudine was out the door she grabbed her back and hid it safely out of the way. “I’m going to leave my bag here. Find us if you need us.”

For the rest of the day Marinette was rushed along, everyone telling her what to do and where to be. If she started freezing up Adrien would give her some pointers and she would be able to keep going. It was the end of the day by the time she got to finally retrieve her bag. Tikki and Plagg were curled up next to each other and she tried her best not to wake them up. She managed to track down Adrien and return Plagg to him. Then she made him promise to meet up with her later to talk.

* * *

By the time Marinette got home she was exhausted. Once the shoot was over Claudine had her right back at her normal intern duties. Any other day she would be thrilled, but today was not any other day. When she got home her parents had dinner ready and waiting. She told them about what had happened and they were thrilled to hear the news. After a yawn that felt like it lasted a full minute, they sent her upstairs to get some rest.

Now that she knew she could always call Adrien and talk to him, but this was too important to leave to a phone call. She was just on her balcony, ready to tell Tikki to transform her when she saw Chat sitting on the chair waiting for her, which would have been a lot sweeter if he hadn’t fallen asleep.

She leaned down and spoke directly into his ear, “Time to wake up kitty!”

Chat jumped up and nearly fell right off the chair. “Sorry, I figured you’d come home first, so I thought I’d wait here.”

“That’s okay. Do you want to come in? It’s supposed to start raining in a little while.” Marinette silently panicked. She just invited Chat Noir into her room. She just invited Adrien into her room.

“I would absolutely a-purr-reaciate that princess.” She rolled her eyes at his pun then dropped herself back down into her room. Chat Noir dropped down behind her and released his transformation. Plagg settled down on his head yawning.

“Wait here, I’ll be right back. Make yourself comfortable.” Marinette went downstairs closing the trap door behind her. She didn’t need her parents wondering how Adrien Agreste ended up in her room. After making sure her parents were in bed (small blessings that came from her parents being bakers) she gathered what she needed and rushed back upstairs.

“I made hot chocolate for us,” Marinette said.

“Thank you.” Adrien was sitting on one end of the lounge chair, as Tikki and Plagg argued on the other.

“I also have chocolate chip cookies for Tikki and a few kinds of cheese for Plagg. If you both want them that is.” She set the plate down on the desk.

Plagg zips over to the plate and managed a thank you in between bites. Tikki gave her a quick hug before heading towards her cookies, “Thank you Marinette.”

“Tikki likes cookies, that is so not fair. I smell like cheese and you smell like cookies.” Adrien pretended to be offended, but his smirk gave him away.

“I smell like cookies anyways, I live on top of a bakery.” Marinette hands him his mug of hot chocolate and sits down at the other end of the chair so they’re facing each other.

“I need to say sorry. You made it clear you weren’t ready for us to know each other’s identities but I messed that up.”

“You don’t need to apologize Adrien. It’s not how I would have chosen to find out, but you came right to me so that’s what’s important. I’m glad it’s you and I’m glad that now I know.”

“Really? Because I was so happy when I realized it was you!” Adrien was practically vibrating with excitement.

“Why is that?”

“You were my first friend I made at school. The first friend I ever had. And you’re my partner too,” Adrien smiled.

“As happy as I am, you know this means we’ll need new rules right?”

Adrien laughed. “Of course, My Lady, I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

**Author's Note:**

> But seriously if anyone can tell me the actual name of what that chair is I'd appreciate it!


End file.
